Addis captures California Democratic Party endorsement, leads fundraising 

With freshly drawn boundary lines bringing Monterey and San Luis Obispo counties into the same Assembly district for the first time, candidates running for the 30th District have a big task ahead of them: getting to know voters who may have never heard their names before.

"I've been canvassing in SLO County, knocking on doors and talking to voters," said Jon Wizard, 30th District candidate and current Seaside City Council member (in Monterey County). "There's a lot of ground to cover in this new district. ... The old AD 35 was a very different district than the new AD 30."

Wizard and Morro Bay City Councilmember Dawn Addis, both Democrats, are leading the pack right now as far as campaign contributions go.

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• Photo Courtesy Of Dawn Addis
• FUNDRAISING LEAD Candidate Dawn Addis currently leads the 30th Assembly District race in number of donors and total amount raised from individual donations. But because of a $50,000 self-loan, opponent Jon Wizard has more dollars at his disposal than Addis right now.

For the Jan. 1 to Dec. 31, 2021, reporting period, according to Cal-Access, Addis raised $56,539 from more than 200 individual contributors. Her contributions range from $25 to $4,900, the maximum an individual can give to a state Senate or Assembly race in California.

In the same reporting period, Wizard raised $72,577, which includes a $50,000 loan he made to himself. The remaining $22,577 came from 50 individual contributions ranging from $100 to $4,147. Wizard also reported a $9,700 contribution on Feb. 24 this year from the California State Council of Service Employees Small Contributor Committee, the maximum amount a candidate can receive from this type of group.

Republican candidate Vicki Nohrden of Monterey County didn't report any campaign contributions for the 2021 reporting period, and neither did Democrat Zoë Carter. Seaside City Councilmember Alexis García-Arrazola raised $100, but has since withdrawn from the raise and endorsed Addis. Democrat John Drake, who unsuccessfully ran to replace Gov. Gavin Newsom in the 2021 recall election, has also joined the race but hasn't reported any campaign contributions yet.

Once the April 28 campaign contribution reporting deadline passes, contributions will be updated, and the March 11 candidate filing deadline may reveal additional candidates in an already crowded race.

"I'm a teacher, not a millionaire, so I have to rely on the support of local residents to fund my campaign, and I think that's a good thing," Addis told New Times in an email. "I am not interested in financial support from Big Tobacco, gun manufacturers or advocates, oil companies, or any organization that undermines the health and well-being of the Central Coast."

Wizard said he won't be taking any money from the fossil fuel industry.

"You have to raise a lot of money to be competitive, unfortunately that's the nature of the beast," he said. "You have to calculate what it costs to talk to each voter."

Endorsements are another important way to capture voters' trust and attention, and both Democratic frontrunners have racked up some big names.

"I'm incredibly honored to have the endorsement of the California Democratic Party," Addis said. "The momentum is exciting."

Wizard said he's proud to be endorsed by the California Legislative Black Caucus and the Cal Poly Democrats.

Nohrden, the lone Republican in the race so far, has the support of the Republican Party of SLO County. Δ